ScottishPower ripping me off?

RagingAvatar

Magentasue wrote: »

If you scan this forum, you will read horror stories from people who have landed huge bills because they didn't know how much they were using. You need to work how how much you can afford a month and keep your usage within limits covered by that amount.

Not sure how far the electricity company will negotiate - you didn't say whether electricity bills had arrived for the previous tenant. They might provide a clue to previous meter readings. If there are none, it suggests a closing reading was given.

Thanks for all the help. If the previous tenant hadn't provided a bill what would the electricity company use for the rate?

Fire_Fox

RagingAvatar wrote: »

Um.. no..

But we don't even have it on that often..

No idea what sort - they're just like huge radiators with individual on/off switches.

They will be storage heaters if they are very bulky, and you will probably be on the standard (expensive) tariff and possibly with an expensive supplier if neither you nor the previous tenant has switched. If you are on a Economy 7 tariff (two readings) AND are using the boost function on the storage heater you are using the heating on the higher priced day rate.

You need to get hold of a moving-in reading from the landlord or letting agent ASAP - often it's on your tenancy paperwork. Take a reading of your own now, as they may be overestimating usage. Then brace yourselves for the bill.

Edited to add: please remove that link from your signature - it's against MSE rules.

Magentasue

Usually when you leave a property, you submit a final reading. Sometimes letting agent/landlord/estate agent also does this in case of dispute. The supplier raises a final bill. If the reading looks out of line, they may query it, otherwise that's what they use.

You then move in and submit your opening reading. Obviously there should be a correlation. If you don't submit one, I would imagine the supplier would use the closing one from the previous tenant. The time to contest this is obviously when you move in - in future, good idea to take readings witnessed by agent.

oramgepekoe

How is your water heated?

RagingAvatar

oramgepekoe wrote: »

How is your water heated?

Electric I guess. I don't have gas for anything.

KimYeovil

Re: your caveat

QED

JohnnyM_2

What I would do is:

1. Read the meter today
2. Read the meter in a weeks time.
3. Work out how much power you have used over the week.
4. Work out how many weeks you have lived there.
5. Work out how much you would have used in that period (based on your weeks usage) factoring in an adjustment for the summer months (depending on what you might/might not use in summer/winter)
6. Work out what you think the start reading would have been (current reading - minus values calculated in point 5)
7. Call the energy company telling them you wrote to them when you moved in with the start readings, and tell them the ones you have calculated, and say the letter must have got lost/not processed etc...

Power companies usually/always take your word for stuff like this. Technically what you are doing could be called fraudulent but if you calculate your usage as accurately as possible as described above then you are making an effort to provide semi-accurate information.

Good luck.

Premier_2

JohnnyM wrote: »

...7. Call the energy company telling them you wrote to them when you moved in with the start readings, and tell them the ones you have calculated, and say the letter must have got lost/not processed etc...

Power companies usually/always take your word for stuff like this. Technically what you are doing could be called fraudulent but if you calculate your usage as accurately as possible as described above then you are making an effort to provide semi-accurate information.

Good luck.

Nothing 'Technically' about it. It would be fraud and as such cannot be condoned on this site.

Energy companies want to be paid for all energy recorded as being consumed on the meter whoever used it, and as previously posted by Magentasue, the start reading of the OP should match closely the closing reading of the previous account holder - else the energy supplier will investigate why.

Magentasue

JohnnyM wrote: »

but if you calculate your usage as accurately as possible as described above then you are making an effort to provide semi-accurate information.

Good luck.

Oh, for goodness sake. It's not about what the OP thinks he may have used - there's a meter there to record how much has actually been used.

KimYeovil

JohnnyM wrote: »

What I would do is:
[...]
7. Call the energy company telling them you wrote to them when you moved in with the start readings, and tell them the ones you have calculated, and say the letter must have got lost/not processed etc...

Power companies usually/always take your word for stuff like this. Technically what you are doing could be called fraudulent but if you calculate your usage as accurately as possible as described above then you are making an effort to provide semi-accurate information.

Good luck.

Reported for abuse. Thieving git.